Dr Sam Caslin begins her investigation into the personality of Elizabeth I by examining a source held at The National Archives at Kew.

“The Great Seal” is one of the official images of Queen Elizabeth.

It is preserved in beeswax and was attached to the most significant official documents of the time to prove that it had come from the Queen.

This particular seal is from 1586, at the height of Elizabeth’s power and the official image shows her in a very grand pose holding an orb to represent her spiritual power and a sceptre to represent her power on earth.

Caslin then unearths a second source at Kew, this time from 1554 when Elizabeth was only 20 years old and not yet Queen.

It is a letter to her older sister, Mary who was then Queen and in the letter Elizabeth is pleading for her life.

She has been implicated in a plot to overthrow her sister, but Elizabeth eloquently defends herself in the letter, claiming that she was not part of the plot.

The letter shows both Elizabeth’s vulnerability and her tenacity.

The two sources thus show very different sides to Elizabeth at very different stages in her life.

This clip is from the series Hunting for History.

Suitable for teaching History at KS3 in England and Wales, CCEA GCSE in Northern Ireland and SQA National 4 in Scotland.

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